welcome to bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: a city in lockdown. chinese officials say the people of wuhan cannot travel, as they try to contain the spread of a deadly virus. at the trump impeachment trial, the us senate hears the opening arguments as the prosecution makes the case against the president. the president was the key player in this scheme. everyone was in the loop. he directed the players in this team. he personally asked a foreign government to investigate his opponent. now you listen here. he is not the messiah, he's a very naughty boy. tributes have been paid to the monty python star

terry jones, who has died at the age of 77. he had been suffering from dementia. chinese authorities have stopped public transport and cancelled all flights and trains from the city of wuhan as they try to control a respiratory virus that has infected at least 500 people and killed 17. they have told wuhan‘s population of around 11 million none of them should leave the city without good reason. china's lunar new year holiday usually sees hundreds of millions on the move. this from our medical correspondent fergus walsh. this is the epicentre of the outbreak. hospitals in wuhan are overwhelmed. more than a dozen health workers have been infected, so medical staff have started wearing full protective suits. now, in a dramatic attempt to slow the virus spreading, the city's entire public transport

system will be shut down. within hours, all flights will be grounded, all trains and bus stations closed. residents are being urged to stay put. wuhan has a population 11 million people. wuhan international airport handles over 2a million passengers a year, with direct flights to london, paris, dubai, and other cities around the world. the last flight out of wuhan for the uk landed at heathrow this evening. passengers were met by health officials after they left the plane. so there was no screening at wuhan, and there was no screening as i've landed. and we were given a leaflet in english saying, if you experience symptoms, call nhs direct. that was from public health england. it was quite sparse, the leaflet, but i've not had my temperature checked. i was allowed through passport control. but further spread of the virus is inevitable. thousands of wuhan residents have

already left the city for the lunar new year holiday, and 400 million people across china will travel this week. 0ne positive — the virus appears less aggressive than the 2002 sars outbreak which killed nearly 800 people. this virus, it appears that a significant proportion of cases actually have milder disease. they do have symptoms. they have fever, they feel poorly. but the symptoms are quite nonspecific, like flu, for instance. so that may pose a challenge in terms of rapidly identifying cases, though it's good news from the point of view of this might not be quite as lethal as sars was. but there are still so many unknowns. the world health organization has delayed a decision until tomorrow about whether to declare a global health emergency. the decision about whether or not to declare a public health emergency of international concern is one i take extremely seriously, and one i am only prepared to make

with appropriate consideration of all the evidence. china has been widely praised for its swift and open response to the new virus. the world's most populous country is taking no chances. fergus walsh, bbc news. 0ur correspondent in beijing, stephen mcdonell, says attitudes to the virus are changing as more cases emerge. the lunar new year in china means that there are millions of people on the move. they are criss—crossing this country and also travelling abroad. and i can tell you, attitudes here over the last 48 hours towards this virus have com pletely hours towards this virus have completely changed. two days ago, speaking to travellers, we could barely find somebody who is all that worried about the situation. now you have people here queueing up to buy facemasks, they are cancelling their

trips. in some cases they have had the chips cancelled for them, for example china's neighbour, north korea, has cancelled all to a group coming infor korea, has cancelled all to a group coming in for the lunar new year. scientists are recommending that nobody travels to wuhan. this is the city where this outbreak started, and they are also saying people shouldn't leave that city. that's a city of ii shouldn't leave that city. that's a city of 11 million people, and they are suggesting during the spring festival, the most important festival in this country, that people shouldn't be coming and going from there. stephen mcdonell in beijing. for more information on the coronavirus, visit our website. among articles and video, this piece by our health correspondent james gallagher on how worried we should all be about the coronavirus. bbc.com/news for all that. on day two of donald trump's impeachment trial in washington, the us senate is hearing opening arguments as the prosecution makes its case that the president should be removed from office for abuse of power and obstructing congress. mr trump denies using american military aid to pressure ukraine into helping discredit one of his democratic party rivals.

the lead impeachment manager, the democrat adam schiff, set out the prosecution case. the documents and testimony that we we re the documents and testimony that we were able to collect paints an overwhelming and damning picture of the president's efforts to use the powers of his office to corruptly solicit foreign help in his re—election campaign, and withhold official acts and military aid to compel that support. 0ver official acts and military aid to compel that support. over the coming days, you will hear remarkably consistent evidence of president trump's corrupt scheme and cover—up. when you focus on the evidence uncovered during the investigation, you will appreciate there is no serious dispute about the facts underlying the president's conduct. let's talk to the bbc‘s chris buckler in washington.

chris, long sessions. what is the latest from them? yes, mike, this is really the prosecution setting out their case. and they have three days to do so. and it has already been a number of hours in which they have been setting this out in forensic details. and it has been a very professional presentation. it has had clips, even clips of president trump himself, and at times that's when you've really seen the senators pay attention and take notice. but it doesn't really have any new information brought to it. and if you take a look at what's actually included so far, it's really documents and information that was already discussed during the impeachment hearings, and we are really getting this idea that perhaps the democrats have been stymied a little by the republicans, who up to this point have blocked the introduction of new documents, issuing subpoenas to the white house, the state department, for

example, or really forcing witnesses at this stage to give evidence. of course, that's an ongoing battle, and you can imagine the democrats really feel that they want to introduce new evidence if they are going to push this case against president trump. chris, talking of documents and evidence, these rather curious words from mr trump today to the effect that we have all the material, they don't have the material. 0n the face of it, that's an admission of obstructing congress, isn't it? and that is one of the charges in this impeachment trial. and yes, it is worth emphasising those words once again. president trump was actually to some extent boasting about how well his team, he thought, were doing. and he said, but honestly, we have all the material, they don't have the material. and that seems to be a direct evidence to this voting down of amendments inside the senate last night, in which the democrats were trying to push for this new material to come from the white house and the state department, and there is absolutely no doubt that democratic members of congress will be saying, time and time again, that those kind of words perhaps indicate that the president might have something to hide. but at this stage, if you listen to his legal team, they seem

very chipper. they believe this is going very well for the president. and of course, they haven't started to make their defence case yet. and for all the drama of this, chris, we should remind people this is pretty much a foregone conclusion. the vote is almost certain to be along party lines. yes, i mean, they have been slightly dramatic moments. we did, for example, have the chiefjustice who is presiding over this trial step in at one stage and telling both sides essentially to behave themselves, that he felt it was becoming too aggressive, too angry, that this should be treated as a very sober trail. and we also had a protester in the last few hours who spoke out at one stage and had to be removed from the chamber. but you are right, republicans and democrats have come to this already feeling that they know what way they are going to vote in this, and that republican majority in the senate means it is inconceivable that president trump could be removed from office, and in fact, at certain points today, there have been

senators missing from the chamber. they left during these long hours of testimony and evidence that was being presented. and that might be an indication that they've heard all this before, and they know exactly what way they are going to vote. chris, thank you very let's get some of the day's other news: experts working for the united nations say they have information to suggest the saudi crown prince, mohammed bin salman, hacked the phone of amazon boss jeff bezos. they are demanding the crown prince is investigated for continuous, direct and personal efforts to target perceived opponents. saudi authorities have dismissed the claims as absurd. environmental activists are saying the contamination of drinking water in the united states with man—made chemicals is far more serious than previously estimated. tests commissioned by the environmental working group have for the first time found toxic chemicals known as pfas in the drinking water of dozens of american cities. some of these chemicals have been linked to cancer, liver damage, and birth weight problems.

the italian foreign minister, luigi di maio, has resigned as leader of five star, the biggest party in parliament. he will stay on as foreign minister. he told party supporters in rome that it was just the end of a phase. the party won a third of the seats in march 2018, but faces losses in important regional elections this weekend. to rapturous applause from a star—studded audience, the french designer jean—paul gaultier has bowed out of the industry with his last haute couture show in paris. the designer, known for challenging gender stereotypes, described the show as a party to celebrate his five decades in fashion. the show was opened by the british singer boy george. 0pening arguments have begun in the trial in new york of the former hollywood producer harvey weinstein, who could face life in prison if convicted. the 67—year—old denies five charges, including rape and sexual assault, relating to two accusers. the defence will argue the encounters with the two accusers were consensual, and that mr weinstein committed no crimes. 0ur north america correspondent

nick bryant has the latest. through a corridor of cameras, harvey weinstein stumbled his way into court. gone, the bravado and swagger of his red—carpet days. and in their opening argument, the prosecution reminded thejury of how powerful he used to be, both physically and psychologically. but he was notjust a titan in hollywood, they claimed. he was a rapist. the court heard that weinstein was a seasoned predator who had lured women to his hotel rooms and private apartments with the promise of opening doors for them in hollywood. then, he would sexually assault and rape them. the jury was told of how the movie mogul then used his power and prestige to silence his accusers. "this is how the industry works," he allegedly told one of them. for years afterwards, they internalised their trauma. harvey, how are you feeling this morning, harvey? are you feeling better? yeah. his defence team said

harvey weinstein was neither a predator nor a master manipulator, and claimed that one of his accusers had sent him hundreds of e—mails demonstrating a loving relationship. he has denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex. the weinstein trial is now the focus of the global #metoo movement. during jury selection, these protesters chanted an anti—rape anthem inspired by survivors in south america. and the rapist is you! this is being seen as a test case — on gender, power and consent. nick bryant, bbc news, new york. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: ahead of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of auschwitz, we talk to one holocaust survivor in jerusalem. donald trump is now the 45th president of the united states. he was sworn in before several hundred thousand people on the steps of capitol hill in washington.

it's going to be only america first — america first. demonstrators waiting for mike gatting and his rebel cricket team were attacked with tear gas and set upon by police dogs. anti—apartheid campaigners say they will carry on the protests throughout the tour. they called him ‘the butcher of lyon'. klaus altmann is being held on a fraud charge in bolivia. the west germans want to extradite him for crimes committed in wartime france. there, he was the gestapo chief klaus barbie. millions came to bathe as close as possible to this spot, a tide of humanity that's believed by officials to have broken all records. this is bbc news,

the latest headlines: a city in lockdown. chinese officials say the ii a city in lockdown. chinese officials say the 11 million people officials say the 11 million people of wuhan cannot travel as they try to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus. at the trump impeachment trial, the us and it is hearing opening arguments as the prosecution makes case against president. let's stay with that story. dave levinthal is editor—at—large at the center for public integrity, and he joins us from washington. good to talk to you again. what are you making of it so far? another dramatic day in washington, dc, as expected, and unlike some senate proceedings, this has been very one—sided and one—sided by design. this is the democrats espys opportunity to make the case against president donald trump and make the case not only to other senators, most of whom's mine had already been

made up, but mostly to the public that, for hours on end, president trump has done something impeachable and that in their opinion is worthy of his removalfrom office. at the ci’ux of his removalfrom office. at the crux of that we heard in many forms and many fashions today the notion that democrats believe he abused the power of his office and has basically in their opinion tried to tamper with the election coming up in 2020 by using an abuse of power move to go ahead and ultimately to the scales in his favour. which, of course, he and his party deny. david, it seems there more moderate republicans who moved to the senate majority leader away from some of his more restrictive plans for the trial, but there's no real likelihood that more of them will ci’oss likelihood that more of them will cross party lines to remove a president of their own party from office? and these were little moves around the margins, they really didn't speak to the material issue at hand about whether donald trump is guilty of the two articles of impeachment before the us senate or

should be acquitted on those two articles of impeachment. absolutely at this point it would be effectively inconceivable for senate republicans to turn on donald trump in the midst of this trial and do something that basically all of them had said they wouldn't do, which is vote for one of those two articles of impeachment. yes, there may be one or two republican senators who would consider doing that, but this is going to be a partyline affair and unless something monumental was to happen in this next couple of weeks, donald trump will still be president of the united states when this impeachment trial is over. dave, 21 yea rs this impeachment trial is over. dave, 21 years ago democratic party president bill clinton was facing impeachment, do you see meaningful comparisons? of course there are meaningful comparisons by virtue of the fact there have only been three impeachment trials in us history, but there are some major differences too, probably the most notable is when bill shorten was facing his impeachment trial, there were some senate emigrants who were

considering voting against donald trump and republicans this time around, donald trump doesn't have that problem. again all republicans are lining up behind him in a major, massive weight and they're going to make a very strong case for when it is their turn and they have the floor of the us senate to go and say that in their opinion this is a hoax, a sham and this is democrats playing politics. but then again, impeachment is a political affair, not a judicial or legal there in the sense of being in a court, this is something that constitutionally is designed to be a partisan and political affair, and that's exactly what we're seeing right now. dave levinthal from the centre for public integrity, thank you very much. my pleasure. tributes have been paid worldwide to the monty python star terryjones, who died earlier this week at the age of 77. the actor and comedian had been suffering from a rare form of dementia. 0ur correspondent david sillito looks back on a career that helped to reshape and revive british comedy. they can't get the fire brigade, mervyn. will the boys‘ brigade do?

hello, mrs rogers? no! oh, i must be in the wrong house! terryjones. in monty python, he was often at his best in a frock. charlie, you come to this mark there. but he also directed their films. he was an historian, a tv presenter, a children's author and friend and writing partner of michael palin. i met him at university in 1962, i think, and we were inseparable for many, many years after that. writing, acting, through the python times. in python, what is terry jones' contribution? when do you know, oh, that's terry? well, i mean, there are certain roles that terry played superbly. a lot of them based on his mother! when he does the mother in the life of brian, "he's not the messiah, he's a very naughty boy!" now, you listen here, he's not the messiah, he's a very naughty boy. now go away!

all: who are you? i'm his mother, that's who. hop up, graybridge! ripping yarns, do not adjust your set, he even wrote for the two ronnies and then, 50 years after they met, it became clear something was very wrong. dementia. at this bafta event, terryjones could barely speak. um, we'd just like to say thank you to everyone. i know it's a great honour for dad to win this award and just... the struggles we're having at the moment, it's been hard, but we're so proud of him. thank you. you described him as a renaissance comedian, a man who... a polymath. which part of terryjones will you really miss most? oh, i shall miss the sociable terry, you know? sorry. i'lljust miss putting my arm

around him and having a drink. he was just a wonderful companion. a terrific companion. so, yes, i shall miss our trips to the bar. i shall miss our pints, and i shall miss our sessions at setting the world to rights. he had his view, i had my view, but he was the most wonderful friend and, as i say, just a terrific person to be with and i won't be the only person who says this. he had an enormous number of friends who loved him dearly. terry jones, who has died at the age of 77. rena quint is 84 and one of those who survived the holocaust, the only member of her family to do so. she lives injerusalem and she's been talking to us ahead of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of auschwitz—birkenau, the nazi death camp in southern poland. dozens of world leaders are expected to gather in israel on thursday for a major ceremony, but it's being held amid deepening concern that anti—semitism

is once again on the rise. 0ur international correspondent 0rla guerin reports. i was very lucky, extremely lucky, to have a husband who expressed his love, and he wrote me notes. every single day, i got a note. in this jerusalem apartment, a love story lasted a lifetime. my most precious darling, i thank god for prompting you to say yes when i proposed to you over 100 times. rena quint had 60 years and four children with her late husband emanuel. this is our family. she is now a proud great—grandmother. a rich life forged from unimaginable horror. and i was lying in a pile of bodies, some dead, some alive. the british came in and they made these huge mass graves to bury10,000. newsreel: i passed through the barrier...

that was april 1945, in bergen—belsen. rena lived to see the liberation, but her entire family perished in the holocaust. alone, aged nine, she was brought to the united states. a new home and a new life. but, 75 years on, rena says anti—semitism is coming back and the lessons of the past must be heeded. we have to remember the hatred that people can learn. germany was a civilised, cultured, educated group of people. how can they have committed such horrific, terrible crimes? we have to remember that. and do you feel like it's even more important for you now to keep telling your story? i do. you ask somebody about auschwitz and they say, "who was he?" how can that be possible that people don't know what auschwitz was? but they don't. so rena takes us to yad vashem.

israel's touchstone of remembrance. honouring six million jews annihilated by the nazis. these were people, each one had a separate personality, each one had a name, each one had a life and their life was snuffed out. and the only thing that's left here are shoes. rena spent years guiding tour groups here. bearing witness brings anguish, but she wants to speak for those who cannot. these are the bodies, one mangled with the other. here are bodies of people who were once alive. i was one of those people. how did i possibly get out? how did i possibly survive bergen—belsen? but when the last of the survivors are gone, who will be the guardians of memory? do you worry, rena, that when people

like you are no longer here that the world will not remember or will not believe? i do worry. the world won't remember. they don't remember the armenian genocide, they don't remember what happened yesterday in syria and afghanistan. they don't remember all the people who are sitting in poverty. even if i was there, i don't believe it, so how much will people who weren't there? how can they believe it? in yad vashem's hall of names, images of the dead. young soldiers troop in to share the binding tragedy of the jewish people. the state of israel is now a regional power. for decades, it has occupied palestinian territories. but some here will always see their nation through the prism of persecution and survival. 0rla guerin, bbc news, yad vashem.

thank you for watching. hello there. wednesday was a rather grey and gloomy day for most of us — misty and murky with some spots of drizzle. there were a few brighter spells, particularly eastern scotland and north—east england, and i think today's looking pretty similar — most places cloudy with limited spells of brightness. we've still got our area of high pressure, it's getting squeezed out as lower pressure's pushing in from the north and from the south. this weather front will be pushing to the north—west of scotland to bring outbreaks of rain. but it's going to be another very grey day. there could be some dense fog patches in places, particularly england and wales,

and some of the cloud might be thick enough for the odd spot of light rain or drizzle. much like wednesday, it's probably eastern scotland and north—east england where we'll see the best of any brightness. we could see a little bit as well across the south—west of england. for most of us, the winds will be winds but stronger in north—west scotland as that weather front moves in. there will be a stronger easterly blowing through the english channel. those temperatures, hovering around eight or nine for most, could see 10 or 11 in the brighter spots of north—east scotland. this weather front pushes further south with rain heavy on it as it continues to go south, but it tends to weaken and elsewhere a rather cloudy night with spots of drizzle and a bit of mist and murk and again a largely frost—free one because of the cloud cover. a few sheltered spots in north—east england and north—east scotland could turn chilly. friday will be similar sort of day. with our low of high pressure with us, it's going to be a rather grey and gloomy one with those temperatures around eight or nine degrees. that is how we are looking on friday but out of friday and into the weekend, we start to see some changes. low pressure starts to push

into the north—west of the country. for england and wales, you'll still notice not many isobars around so another day of light winds here and quite a bit of cloud. further north—west, for scotland and northern ireland, it will be a breezier day and we'll start to that weather front pushing into the north—west of scotland. could be as well because of the breeze mixing up the air, we could see some brightness for scotland and northern ireland but a rather cloudy day for most. those temperatures, 7—10. as you move through saturday night into sunday, that weather front begins to push eastwards, slowly sliding across the country and you'll notice more isobars on the chart for sunday. so it's going to be a breezeier day, or windier day, for us all, particularly in the north—west. this weather front moving eastwards will bring outbreaks of patchy rain, the odd heavier burst on it as it moves across england and wales. brighter skies in scotland and northern ireland but here there will have blustery showers and they will be wintry and quite cool over high ground, nine or 11 in the south—east. then as we head into following week could be unsettled. we could see a deep low bringing gales and a spell of wet weather earlier in the week.

this is bbc news.

the headlines: public transport has been closed down in the chinese city of wuhan, as the authorities attempt to control an outbreak of a new virus. nearly 600 people have been infected. 17 have died. flights and trains out of wuhan have been cancelled. people living there have been told they shouldn't leave the city, but millions have already chat, travelled for lunar new year. the trail of harvey weinstein has been told he is a seasoned sexual predator with vulnerable actresses as his prey. he denies five charges including rape and sexual assault relating to two women.